December 21, 2007

Being
a fan of "The Secret", Oprah and "Eat, Pray, Love" - the author
reminds me of a jaded person who has made a career of poking holes in
other peoples work. I cringe at the example of his dream to be a
center-fielder for the Dodgers. Happiness comes from busting your gut
trying rather than not having tried at all.

Where would the world be if Sakichi Toyoda (The Founder of Toyota) had not read Samuel Smiles book "Self Help"?

Where would a whole generation of former players, coaches and
staff be if they had not read and listened to John Wooden about
mastering life?

Where would Oprah Winfrey be if she did not empower herself to be more than a poor black girl from Mississippi?

What I don't see Mr. Salerno recommending is an alternative.
He is making a connection to suicide rates because of coddling,
anti-depressants and self help books. That just does not hold water to
me. I could make the same argument that dual income self involved
parents and electronic devices had the same level of impact and
contributed to the suicide rates during that time.

Self help is anything but a SHAM. Happiness is about
curiosity - finding out more about yourself and the world around you.
Learning to see that the world is changing constantly and navigating
the river of life is a never ending journey. Life is a marathon, but if you never break the bonds of
what you know - you stagnate. Folks like Steven Covey, David Allen and
Wayne Dyer have and continue to help me grow everyday.

Complacency kills innovation and curiosity. Settling for anything is not a recipe for success - nor happiness.